Football

Norwich 49, Chittenango 20

CHITTENANGO – No echoes from the past were heard at Chittenango Friday night.

The Bears defeated Norwich 21 years ago in the first year of the statewide football tournament, but have not seen the Purple Tornado since that Nov. 93 day. They may not want to dip into the Tornado waters again anytime soon.

"I think the pieces are starting to come together and people are fitting into their roles," said Norwich coach Mike Chrystie after his club's second straight win.

After stopping Norwich on its opening possession, NHS was uncontainable until the reserves and second-stringers took the field full-time.

Cole Rifanburg threw three TD passes and Mike Oralls rushed for 158 yards and a career-high four touchdowns as Norwich led 36-0 at the half with a safety thrown into the mix.

"Michael ran it very hard and he looked like a man among boys," Chrystie said. "Everyone was clicking offensively, and we also created a number of turnovers."

Cole Rifanburg hooked up with older brother Tristan Rifanburg on a 25-yard scoring pass to start the game, and added TD tosses of six and five yards to Zan Stewart.

Oralls’ TD runs covered 14, 27, 23, and two yards.

Matt Parrella had two interceptions and Everett Thompson also picked off a pass. Chittenango did not get a whiff of the end zone until late in the third quarter when the game's outcome was no longer an issue.